I Want You
by haveyouseenmyhaggis
Summary: He can't believe this happened to him. Especially not with John Hart! Owen, in a moment of vulnerability has his life torn to pieces by Jack's ex lover. John/Owen slash. Dark themes. Not nice for Owen.
1. Nobody There To Help

**Title: I Want You**

**Summary: John Hart finds a certain member of the Torchwood team in a bar after a very difficult day. The young team member is feeling friendless and miserable, but what happens when someone catches on to his vulnerability? John/Owen. Not pleasant. Very dark themes.**

**Author's Note: This would come around the top end of T rating. Be warned. And to the RRA, finally, you know what I was on about. It's wrong I tell you! It's just not right! I don't even know where the hell this idea came from. It was just there!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own _Torchwood._**

* * *

Owen thumped down on the bar stool in a huge state of irritation. It had been a long day and all he wanted to do was forget all the crap that had happened. It had just been one of those days where emotions were running high and he got too attached to a case.

He sighed as he placed his order with the girl behind the bar. She gave a quick wink in his direction and Owen growled. He couldn't be bothered with flirtatious girls right now. He'd had enough of girls that day already. As his pint of lager was placed in front of him he gulped it down quickly and then ordered another.

"Long day, eh?" asked the girl behind the bad.

"You could say that," Owen said slowly. The girl was a blond wearing a very short skirt and a low cut top. Usually the young doctor would have found that attractive but right now he couldn't care less. She was just another face in the crowded bar that night. She slammed another glass in front of him and then leant forwards on her elbows to talk to him.

"So, you wanna talk about it?" she asked with a sweet smile that she'd obviously practised in the mirror.

"Trust me love, you wouldn't believe me if I told you," Owen retorted as he took a gulp of his drink. His goal for the night was not to get sex from a random person whose name he wouldn't even remember, but to get as hammered as he could and then stagger home and sleep through every single one of Jack's calls the next day. He'd ignore the bastard and let him worry.

"Try me," the girl said softly as though he was somebody she really cared about, "You get all sorts in here on Friday nights. After you've seen that you've seen it all."

"Not even close," Owen laughed slightly as he pushed his empty glass back at the girl, "Now, do me a favour and fill that up and leave me alone."

"Fine," she snapped and snatched up his glass. Owen smiled as she walked away. Then he pulled out his phone and turned it off. That way he was unreachable. He wouldn't get any calls from Torchwood until he turned it on again. Perfect. The girl passed him another drink and he sat there in silence while letting the pounding of the music wash over him and drown out all of his thoughts – or maybe that was the drink.

Then somebody was sitting beside him and watching him expectantly. Owen glared icily at him for a moment and waited for his vision to clear so he could make out the man's face. He pushed his fifth glass away from him and narrowed his eyes.

"What?" he demanded moodily. Hell, what would he have to go through to get a bit of peace in this place? The man just smiled at him warmly. Owen frowned, "Who are you?"

"Oh, you don't recognise me then?" the man asked. True, the voice did sound familiar but he couldn't quite remember where he'd heard it before.

"No," Owen replied bluntly, "And I don't care, so bugger off and leave me alone."

"You're going to drink yourself into a coma, Owen," the man remarked casually.

"How d'you know my name?" Owen demanded at once.

The man seemed momentarily wrong footed, "Oh," he said.

"Oh!" Owen repeated, suddenly annoyed, "Shit!" It had clicked. He knew exactly who he was facing now, "What the hell are you doing here?" he growled.

"Figured out who I am now then?" he laughed.

"Get the hell away from me," Owen snapped. Fuck it, the one night when he's half drunk, ditched his gun in the car, and in an awkward situation with his friends would be the same night John bloody Hart, Jack's ex, turned up in the very same bar he was in.

"Well, that's not very nice is it Owen," John laughed, unconcerned by Owen's outburst, "Surely you can be more polite than that!" John put a hand on Owen's shoulder as though he was placating the situation or something. The doctor tried to shrug off the touch but John kept a firm hold.

"Seriously, I mean it, get the hell off of me," Owen warned, aware of how his breathing had quickened through panic. Last time he'd met John Hart they'd nearly all been killed. How could he face a man who nearly killed you without feeling intimidated?

"I just come in to get a drink and this is what I get?" John said in false disbelief, "Let me buy you a drink."

"No thanks," Owen said stiffly. He was beginning to wish he'd just gone home that night. He could feel the last five drinks messing with his head and clouding his judgement.

"Well, if you want to play it that way…" John said with a suggestive smirk. Owen's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"I don't want to play anything," he said tetchily and tried to get up off the barstool. John tightened his grip on the younger man's shoulder and held him back while he stood up himself.

"Did I ever mention you had lovely eyes?" John whispered. Owen's stomach leapt violently. He didn't want to be hearing this. He couldn't be hearing this. He didn't want this. He especially didn't want John's hand trailing down his spine and making the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

Owen tried to swing a punch at John's face but as his fist came level with the other man's head it was held tightly in John's hand. The young Torchwood recruit struggled violently as John pulled him towards the back of the bar. They ploughed through bodies swaying to the music and they weren't notcied in the crowd.

"Let go of me you bastard!" Owen snarled. It was taking a great deal of difficulty to keep his words from slurring and he was getting scared.

"Don't shout Owen, please," John said as though he was bored with this captive's attempts to escape, "I can shoot you if I have to." Then there was the sound of gun being loaded and Owen whimpered slightly. Still, nobody else seemed to notice the gun. Owen could feel it pressed against his stomach and knew that John was so close to him that the weapon wasn't visiable to anyone else.

"Don't…" he whispered quietly.

"Oh come on, Owen, I'm not done with you yet!" John laughed and then his hand was pulling Owen's head closer. The younger man assumed that the gun was gone again because John's other hand was clutched around his waist. None of the surrounding people even seemed to care what was going – either that or they didn't notice.

Then in terrifying rush of movement Owen found himself slammed against a wall in a deserted room in the back of the bar with John's lips against his own. The doctor found himself in tears as John whispered in his ear and kept kissing him. It was dark so his tears went on unnoticed by the other man.

"What the hell d'you want?" Owen whimpered softly. John stepped away from Owen slightly but kept one arm around him while he locked the door of the room.

"I want you, Owen Harper, oh I want you," John said with a sickening smile. Owen tried to fight him but next thing he knew, John had pinned his arms to the wall and was kissing him again. There wasn't even anyone there to help.


	2. Stop Complaining

**Author's Note: I was really, really happy with how many reviews this story got! I'm flattered, I really am! I wasn't sure how well this would go down. Thank you all so much!**

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"Good boy Owen," John murmured in Owen's ear hours later. Owen didn't reply. He didn't trust himself to open his mouth. He felt hot tears burning his cheeks as he found himself in a situation he'd never dreamed he'd find himself in.

The other man slipped off of Owen and sat cross-legged on the floor beside him. It was dark but their eyes had become accustomed to the gloom enough that they could make out rough shapes. The young doctor was acutely aware of how exposed he was and instinctively tried to get up and get away. John placed a hand in the small of Owen's back and pushed him to the ground again.

"Why are you doing this?" Owen asked quietly. He wasn't used to feeling weak and powerless and it wasn't a sensation he was enjoying. He didn't like the way John seemed to think he had had access to his body whether he agreed or not. He couldn't even begin to understand how this had happened.

"Why?" John repeated with a mocking edge in his voice, "Because I think Jack needs to be taught a lesson!" Then he laughed slightly as he looked down on his victim sprawled on the ground in tears. He reached out and pulled Owen to his knees so he could lean in and kiss him again. Owen struggled with as much force as he could find within himself. He was exhausted and he was pretty sure every inch of his body was bruised. Jack had never mentioned violent behaviour his ex had when someone tried to do something against him.

"Get off me," Owen snarled desperately. All he wanted was for this to stop so he could go home. Then John's fist collided with his face and sent him reeling.

"Stop complaining! Just relax and you might even enjoy yourself," John said patronisingly. Owen snorted in incredulity and that only earned him another smack across the face. "Now, are you going to behave?" John hissed as Owen trembled in his grip.

"No," Owen spat. He wasn't one to take orders from people who'd just… Who'd just… He didn't even want to think about it.

"Oh really? Well, we'll have to see about that, won't we?" John laughed cruelly as he threw another punch at his captive. Owen moaned in pain and tried to imagine he was somewhere – _anywhere_ – else.

* * *

Jack sat at his desk at nine o' clock that morning staring blankly at the wall. He wasn't sure what today would bring but he hoped it would be better than yesterday. Everything had been hectic the day before and it had only ended in hurt and upset.

He sighed and stood up. He wished he hadn't been so hard on Owen. He'd tried his best and acted as he thought he should have done. After all, he himself would have done the same had he been in Owen's situation. Now he'd just caused bad feeling between them. Even Gwen, Ianto and Tosh thought he'd over reacted but understood why he'd done it. Owen had stormed out of the Hub in a bad mood. Jack had tried to contact him several times that night to say sorry and to try and make things right again. All he'd got on the line was the automated female voice telling him cheerfully "It has not been possible to connect your call." Even being with Ianto hadn't managed to put Jack's mind at ease that night. Despite the Welshman's best efforts, Jack couldn't get Owen's look of hatred out of his mind.

"Alright Jack?" Ianto asked softly as he appeared in the Captain's office after having a shower. Jack blinked and looked up in surprise.

"Oh. Yeah," Jack answered distractedly.

"Owen?" Ianto asked knowingly. Jack nodded. "It wasn't your fault!" Ianto insisted, "Any of us would have done the same in your position."

"We both know that's a lie," Jack replied as his gaze met Ianto's. The other man didn't reply for a moment or two and Jack sighed and looked at the desk in frustration.

"I didn't mean to be that harsh with him," Jack said uselessly, "It's just… I just… Gwen was going to get hurt."

"I understand. We all do. Just give Owen some space and he'll come round. I think he knows it too. He's just hurting because he was betrayed by someone he thought he could trust," Ianto explained.

"I know… I just," Jack tried to say as he rested his chin on one of his hands. Ianto smiled sadly and took Jack's other hand gently.

"It's not your fault," he said.

Jack smiled gratefully, "Anyway, give him a phone and tell him to get in here. He's late."

* * *

Meanwhile, Owen curled up hugging his knees in the back of a van John had stolen from somewhere. After being forced to get dressed again he'd been dragged out of the fire escape in the little room in the bar. Every muscle in his body ached and he was horribly aware of the blood dribbling from his lip. He wiped it with his hand and shut his eyes tightly.

Then he was sobbing uncontrollably. He hoped John wouldn't hear him crying from the front of the van as he drove. The motions of the can were making Owen's stomach churn violently and he fought the urge to throw up. How long would it be before Jack and the others realised he wasn't coming to work?


	3. What Happens Now?

**Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who reviewed! And thank you to those who reviewed anonymously so I couldn't reply to you. It means a lot to me!**

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"No answer, Sir," Ianto said as he walked back into Jack's office with an apologetic look on his face. Jack frowned in slight irritation. He'd known Owen was annoyed at him but he didn't think he'd just not show up to work.

"Try again. He can't ignore us forever," Jack sighed.

"His phone's turned off," Ianto said sadly, "And he's not picking up his home phone."

"Well, like I said, keep trying. Give him an hour or so," Jack said. His employee nodded and left the office. The Captain couldn't quite shake the suspicion that something was wrong. Owen was usually quite good about turning up at work even if he was in the mood from hell. What if something was wrong? He decided that if he hadn't replied within the hour he'd go round to his flat and force an apology upon him.

* * *

The van skidded to a halt and Owen woke with a jolt. He hadn't been aware he'd fallen asleep but he had one hell of a headache now. He considered making a run for it as soon as John opened the door. That would be stupid though. John was armed and would shoot him dead without a second thought. Impatiently he wiped the tears out of his eyes and tried to put on a brave face. It wouldn't help to let his captor know he was scared.

When the door of the van swung open, John grinned widely at him. Owen glared at him icily and took in the man's hungry eyes. His appearance hadn't changed since the last time he'd met him at Torchwood. He winced slightly at the memory of the team's close shave with death.

"How are you, Owen?" John asked brightly as he jumped into the back of the van and dragged Owen to his feet. Owen didn't answer but let himself be led out of the van and into street outside. It was a place he didn't recognise. Going by the street name he guessed he was still in Cardiff; he was pretty sure he'd seen that name before on a map in the Hub.

"Cat got your tongue?" John laughed slightly as Owen blinked in the brightness of the morning.

"Hmm," Owen grumbled moodily. John jerked his arm hard and pulled him along to a door to their left after slamming the van door. "Let me go," Owen demanded again. He really didn't want to go wherever John was taking him. Hell, how could Jack have even begun to love the sick bastard? More importantly, where was Jack now? When would he realise his doctor needed help? He'd have phoned the Hub if John hadn't confiscated his phone before he threw him in the van.

"You ever done it with Jack?" John asked casually as he dragged his protesting captive towards a modern looking apartment. It was an impressive Victorian design and there was a staircase leading to the upper floor. The older man was close to bouncing up the stairs save for the fact Owen was trying stubbornly to go the other way.

"No," he said in reply to the question, "Why?" He couldn't see what relevance that had to anything. He switched his focus on to getting up the stairs without tripping up as he realised he wasn't going to escape. It would be easier for him just to go along with John's little game.

"Just wondering. Maybe if you were Jack's little-."

"If you're looking for his lover you've got the wrong guy," Owen growled. John smirked and looked at him almost pityingly.

"I'm not looking for his lover, Owen," he said condescendingly, "I'm just trying to work out how he'd feel about what you and I did."

"We never did anything," Owen said bluntly.

"Oh but we did!" John laughed, "Or I did. You didn't. But you will next time, believe me. You'll practically be begging me for it!"

"In your dreams," Owen muttered darkly as his stomach swooped dramatically. Then he was being forced through a heavy wooden door and into the imposing hallway of the apartment.

"Did I never tell you? I've a habit of making my dreams work," John sniggered as Owen flinched. He tried to distract himself by looking at every detail of the hallway as he walked down it. There was a thick wooden floor beneath his feet and the walls were decorated a dingy grey. There was nothing homely about the place

"Sit down, Owen," John insisted as they walked into the kitchen. There was a small wooden table and a few chairs placed in the middle of the room. Owen blundered over to one of the chairs and sat down obediently.

"What happens now?" Owen asked quietly and tried to keep the fear out of his voice.

"Oh, I dunno. I'll have a think about what I want with you shall I?" John laughed as he pulled out a length of rope from a creaky drawer. Owen's mind went numb. He was going to be kept here for prisoner by a psychopath until Jack could find him – God knows how long that would take.

He got up and made a bolt for the door in a desperate bid to escape. He knew at once it was a crazy idea but he really needed to get away. It was only when the gun went off that he knew escape wasn't going to be straightforward. He heard the explosion and his heart sank in terror. Surely he was going to die now.


	4. Jack's Not Coming

"Jack, he's not picking up at all," Ianto said, clearly quite distressed as he walked into the Captain's office once again, "You don't think… You don't think something's wrong do you?"

Jack hesitated, "No. No I think he's fine. Maybe got a hangover but he'll be fine," he said finally, trying to sound as though he actually believed that. He had a horrible nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach that something wasn't quite right. He sighed and got to his feet, "I'll go round to his flat and get him."

"Want me to come?" Ianto asked.

"Yeah, you might as well. Tell Gwen and Tosh where we're going and I'll start up the SUV," Jack said and walked purposefully out of the office.

* * *

Owen trembled on the ground as pain rocketed through his leg. He lay on the hard wooden floor gasping for his breath. John Hart looked down at him with a bored expression.

"You silly boy, Owen," he said as he put the gun back inside his jacket, "I told you not to run away or I'd shoot you." He laughed slightly as rolled up his trouser leg urgently to investigate. He winced as he saw the bullet hole blasted just below his knee.

"Give me a cloth," Owen demanded then. Surely his captor would allow him to stem the blood gushing from his leg, if only to save the mess on the floor? John rolled his eyes and knelt down to Owen's level. He looked at the wound on the young doctor's knee and sighed.

"You can fix that up yourself," he said casually, "You're not completely helpless."

Owen stared at him. The pain was confusing him and it was taking longer to figure out what was going on. He bit down on his lip to stop himself whimpering. John got up and wandered over to the window of the small room. He pulled down the blinds and then filled the kettle. He set about making a cup of coffee – seemingly forgetting about Owen on the floor. Coffee seemed surprisingly mundane to Owen. He couldn't quite see why John was doing that.

Then pain twisted at his leg again and he gasped. John looked around at him and laughed as one might when a child does something silly but funny. Owen fumbled with the buttons on the front of his shirt and pulled it off. He wrapped it tightly around the bleeding wound on his leg. He wound the fabric round tightly with the skill that only a doctor could have.

John smiled slightly as the young man tried to stem the blood. He walked casually forward and tugged Owen off the ground by the scruff of his neck. Owen lashed out and struck him in the stomach. John doubled over slightly but kept his grip on the other man. Owen struggled to land another punch but before he could John had tugged his head back making him lose balance. He pulled Owen to his feet and smirked as he tried to keep the weight off his injured leg.

"Hurt?" he asked in a mocking sympathy. Owen growled at him and tried to hit him despite the pain in his leg and in his neck where John's hand was. It amused the older man to see the fire returning to the doctor's eyes. That was the Owen he wanted to see. "Sit down," he demanded and threw Owen down into the chair again. He cried out in pain and then bit down on his lip and glared. "Jack's never going to find you here so stop hoping," John laughed bitterly.

* * *

Jack and Ianto pulled up outside Owen's flat with a squeal of tyres. They looked up at the window they knew to be the young doctor's and noted the fact the lights were all off. Jack took the lead and jumped out of the SUV and made his way to Owen's door. Ianto followed a few paces behind. They knocked on the door a few times and waited. No answer.

"What the hell is he playing at?" Jack snarled furiously.

"Jack… What if he's actually not there?" Ianto probed quietly. Jack bit his lip and looked at his companion with wide eyes.

"I dunno Yan," he said before drawing out a revolver. He aimed it carefully at the lock of Owen's door and fired the lock off. The door sprang back and the Captain hurried inside calling his employee's name as he searched every room. His heart sank as he found nothing. This was going to be more difficult than he'd first thought. Where the hell was Owen? This was getting worrying now.


	5. The DVD

**Author's Note: I am really sorry about how long it took to update! My school's been on Inservice Days and I was at a sleepover. I'm sorry! Hope you enjoy this chapter! I'm just glad I got this one written and finished tonight. My Biology homework took forever!**

* * *

Owen shifted uncomfortably in the chair as John tied the length of rope around his waist and the chair. The makeshift bandage on his leg was staining red and the blood was dripping on to the floor in a morbid pool.

"Why you keeping me here?" Owen asked softly as John bound his hands behind him. He struggled and tried to pull away but John was stronger than he was. Also, he hadn't been shot in the leg and that was always an advantage. Owen felt vulnerable and violated. It was as though he had no right to his own body now. He shuddered as John ran a hand over his bare chest. He growled and tried to pull away from the touch. There was no way he was going to let that man… Let him… He shook his head slightly to block out the memories.

"I'm keeping you here because I want Jack to see I won't take no for an answer. I want him back," John snarled.

"You only had to ask," Owen muttered darkly. John struck him across the jaw and stormed out of the room to leave his prisoner to his thoughts. Owen shivered as the door slammed shut, "God Owen! Why the hell do you end up in situations like this?" he snarled under his breath. He didn't really know how to get out of this and all he wanted to do was break down and cry. But of course, Owen Harper was not one for crying. He would find a way to escape no matter what.

Then John came back clutching a DVD half an hour later. There was a bright red stamp marked across the disk bearing the word "Security". John looked at Owen with a bright smile, "Hello Owen."

"Hmm," Owen mumbled without expression. He watched as the man turned the DVD over in his hands with a smile.

"I like home movies, don't you Owen?" laughed John as he focused the camera on Owen, "I thought your friends might like to see this. Can you guess what this is?"

Owen stared at the DVD for a moment before his brain started to put two and two together, "Shit…"

John sniggered, "I think it's not a bad tape actually. I thought Jack might like to see what you've been up to."

"No!" Owen cried out desperately. His eyes widened and he pulled against the ropes tying him to the chair, "Don't you bloody dare!"

"Owen, don't think you can tell me what to do," John snarled suddenly aggressive. The doctor glared heatedly at him. He was fighting an internal battle though; what if Jack getting the DVD helped them find him? What if Jack was able to work out where he was?

"Jack doesn't need to see that," Owen said slowly.

"Oh I think he does. I wonder what he'd think if he thought I'd moved on from him. Would he want me back?" he pondered as he walked around the room aimlessly. Owen's gaze followed him as he moved.

"I doubt it," Owen said bluntly.

John raised an eyebrow, "You think?"

"I know," Owen said, hoping he sounded at least a little bit more confident than he felt.

John just laughed at him, "I don't think you know Jack at all." Then he strutted out of the room again. He returned with a laptop and inserted with the DVD into the drive. John spent the next while uploading the bar's security footage onto the laptop to send to Torchwood. Owen sat trying desperately to block out the sounds with tears biting at his eyes again.

* * *

"Hey Jack, Ianto? It's Tosh," Toshiko Sato said over the Bluetooth headset to her boss and her colleague.

"What is it?" Jack wanted to know.

"It's a video. We've been sent a video from someone. Get over here now," she said urgently. She had a feeling this was something Jack should see. She thought it was maybe connected to Owen's sudden disappearance. She really hoped he was alright. She was worried about him. Yesterday had been hard on them all and now he wasn't in his house and wasn't answering his phone.

She knew Owen could be spontaneous and impulsive but what if he'd done something really silly this time? What if he'd hurt himself? Or worse? Surely he wouldn't have done that. He works for Torchwood! Bad things happen to them all the time! She just hoped he was found sooner rather than later.


	6. Make Me

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Author's Note: Update or I die? Charming. Thanks for that choel. Sorry, my laptop wasnt working last night and I've had a lot to do the last few days. Sorry! Here's the update. Thank you for the offers to do my homework! And to kill me if I don't update... I suppose. Anyway. Enjoy!

* * *

"I can't watch this," Tosh said getting up and walking away from the computer screen. Her eyes were gleaming with tears and she wiped at them impatiently with the back of her hand. Gwen was looking resolutely at the floor and Ianto had wandered off somewhere. None of them wanted to see what had happened to their colleague. Only Jack forced himself to watch. He felt that he should know exactly what had happened to his younger employee in order to help him. He could understand if the rest of the team didn't want to see this because he didn't either.

"We have to find him," Ianto whispered softly after they got to the point in the video where they couldn't take much more. Jack nodded in agreement and skipped to the end of the footage. He wanted to see what had happened afterwards. Was Owen still lying in that tiny room? Had John taken him somewhere else?

"We will, Ianto, trust me," Jack promised with a sincere look in his pale eyes. There was no way he was going to give up on Owen.

"We should check out the bar," Gwen said quietly. There was a mumble of agreement and they headed wordlessly towards the SUV.

* * *

Owen shivered violently. The gunshot wound on his leg was throbbing painfully and he couldn't quite see through the aching.

"You alright kid?" John sneered and Owen nodded weakly. He was beginning to feel tired. He was losing a lot of blood from his leg. He knew all the science behind it but didn't want to think too much about what was happening to him.

"I'm fine," Owen lied.

John smirked at him before shifting his chair closer to Owen's, "That's the video sent. Pretty soon Jack and your friends will know what happened to you. Think they'll be worried? I do. Think they'll find you? Not a bloody chance."

"They will," Owen insisted, "Believe me they will find me."

"You just hope so," John snorted as he put a finger underneath Owen's chin and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. The doctor pulled away and growled furiously. John just laughed and stood up, "I guess we best make the best of the time we have together then," he smirked.

"Don't touch me," Owen snarled. There was a dangerous fire burning in his eyes and that only seemed to make his captor more excited.

"You should be grateful I'm caring enough to keep you alive," he sneered.

"You don't care," Owen retorted.

"Would you like to see me when I don't care?" John hissed, his face clouding with fury in an instant. Owen flinched slightly but held his gaze. He didn't say anything. He wasn't entirely sure what to say. "Oh, poor little Owen Harper," John whispered as he untied Owen's bonds.

"Get the hell off me," Owen snarled as John tugged him to his feet.

"Make me," John leered as slammed Owen up against the wall by his throat. Owen chocked and threw a punch against John's jaw. He swayed for a second before slamming his knee into Owen's stomach.

* * *

"Tosh, trace Owen's car. Trace everything Owen might have that we can possibly trace," Jack said urgently as they walked purposefully into the bar. There weren't people there so early in the morning but the barman looked up curiously as they went in.

"Can't you see we're closed?" he said moodily, "And busy too. We're looking for a CCTV tape that's been stolen. If you don't mind, can you please leave?"

"Sorry, it's that CCTV footage we're here about. Somebody had it and sent us a copy. Somebody was…" Jack trailed off in a struggle to complete the sentence.

"Somebody was raped through in this bar last night," Gwen said in one breath. She looked like she was going to throw up but she put a brave face on. She had to do this for Owen. They had to find him.

"R… Raped?" the barman did a double take, "You being serious?"

"Deadly," Jack said bitterly, "Wish I could tell you I was joking but I can't."

"You seen this man?" Ianto said walking forwards and holding out a photo of Owen for the man to look at.

"Yeah… He was here with another guy. Left with him too. Saw the other guy drive the van off."  
"Owen…" Tosh whispered in despair.


	7. Found?

**Author's Note: Choel Ffydd, what do you mean "two sentences about Jack"? And I'm not being a fool either. Anyway, wiuu, thank you for reivewing too! And everyone else too. I would like to warn you that this chapter is a bit darker than the other ones. I've been in a bit of a foul mood for the last few days and unfortunatly this is the result. I think it's a good enough chapter but I feel really bad about it. Enjoy!**

* * *

"You're a stubborn boy, I'll give you that," John laughed as he dabbed his bleeding lip with the back of his hand. Owen just watched him darkly and tried to keep breathing normally. He was lying on the ground trying not to show the incredibly pain shooting through his body. He'd fought bravely but it had been too hard to keep it up when he couldn't put the weight on his left leg. John had a slight height advantage and he wasn't completely exhausted as Owen was.

"You'll never get away with this," Owen snarled. He was determined not to let John realise just how scared he was. That would just be stupid. John reached down and dragged Owen to his feet again and smirked as he looked him up and down. Owen squirmed slightly as he felt the other man's touch burn his skin slightly. He didn't know what it was but something about John Hart felt poisonous. He wished Jack and the others would hurry up and help him. He wasn't going to deny he wasn't going to get out of this alone. He was in too much of a mess to make a solo escape possible.

"Just watch me get away with this Owen," John sneered as he pinned Owen up against the wall.

"Jack'll be here soon," Owen insisted, "You fucked up when you sent him that video."

"Really?" John asked casually, "I don't think I did. I think it's only fair your friends know what happened to you before you died."

"I'm not going to die," Owen growled. His heart was racing frantically and he was struggling to convince himself of that fact. What if he did die? What would happen then? Would Jack and the others be able to find a replacement for him? Would he be that dispensable? Would they even care? What if they thought he was burden to the team and it would make them glad to have him dead? What if...?

"Oh but you are," John said with a mock sad tone in his voice, "I'm going to make sure you die. Believe me." John smirked and pulled out a kitchen knife from a drawer in the unit beside them. Owen watched it with wide terrified eyes and struggled violently. He didn't want to die this way. Hell, he didn't want to die at all but he certainly wasn't ready for death right now.

"Get the hell off me!" Owen yelled in panic as he pulled against John's grip.

"I don't think so, Owen," John laughed cruelly.

* * *

"You've had a reported disturbance?" Jack repeated, slightly dazed, "Where?" He was using his Bluetooth headset and talking to the police department from the SUV. He'd decided they were the best place to try and get information on Owen's disappearance. He couldn't really get any information out of the man at the bar so he took what he did have to the police. Maybe they'd had something he could use. Evidently they did.

"Yeah, someone reported a gun shot in the next apartment. We have team following it up now," the officer on the line said. He gave the address while Tosh, Ianto and Gwen listened on curiously. As soon as the police officer was finished speaking Ianto had typed in the address into a satellite navigation system. "A gun shot?" Jack asked, "Anything else?"

"They reported a lot of noise and disturbance apparently," the officer reported.

"Did they see anything?" Jack wanted to know.

"Not that we know of. Apparently there's a van parked outside that hasn't been seen there before. That information corresponds with a report of a stolen vehicle."

"Right, thank you for your time," Jack said before hanging up the headset. He'd gotten everything he needed to know and now it was time to act on the new information, "C'mon. Let's go."

* * *

John Hart forze when he heard the noise outside. He dumped Owen's semi-conscious form on to the ground and hurried over to the window. His jaw dropped when he saw the police car sitting outside. Then he righted himself and smirked; the police would be no match for him. They wouldn't be able to get to him. He turned and walked back to his prisoner and knelt on the ground beside him. He winced slightly as he noted the ridiculous amount of blood on both of them.

"You contacted the police, didn't ya?" John said slowly. Owen just shut his eyes and tried to keep breathing through the pain stabbing in his body.

John shook him violently, "Talk to me, Owen!"

"I..." Owen began uselessly. His voice was sticking in his throat and he was finding it hard to even stay awake, "I... didn't!"

"But you _did_," John hissed. He knew perfectly well there was no way Owen could have done it but Owen didn't have to know that.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door and a loud voice, "Police! Open the door!"

John raised an eyebrow at Owen and dragged the young doctor to his feet and pulled him up against the wall furthest from the door, "Behave, Harper." He was aware of the fact that Owen was no longer able to support his own weight and was leaning heavily on him. There was always a downside to beating someone up; they become _way _to dependant on you.

"Open the door!" the voice called again. When John didn't, the door burst open with a loud bang. Owen opened his eyes in bewilderment and then his expression became one of hope. John shook him slightly and growled. The police officer, a dark haired, round faced man, was standing in the door and he looked shocked to see Owen there.

"Let him go," the officer demanded as he drew out a gun from his belt. Then a female officer with long blonde hair appeared beside them and her eyes widened.

"Hello sweetheart," John said silkily. He couldn't care less if he didn't know who this woman was.

"Don't call me that. Let that man go," she commanded firmly.

John cocked his head to the side in false innocence, "What? Owen?"

"If that's his name, yes," the male officer said darkly. There was a tension in the air and Owen trembled weakly in fear and confusion. He could barely keep things together and he was beginning to believe he would die before he was rescued. His heart was racing too fast and oxygen wasn't coming fast enough. He was horribly aware of how much blood he was losing through various wounds but there wasn't anything he could do about it. At least he'd given John one hell of a black eye to be dealing with.

"What if I want to keep him?" John said softly with a taunting tone in his voice. Owen shivered and John held him tighter and rolled his eyes slightly as the doctor's head lolled on to his shoulder as he veered dangerously towards unconsciousness.

"Get out of my way!" came a sudden shout that both John and Owen recognised.

"Jack..." Owen whispered weakly as he opened his eyes with an incredible effort. The look of hope in his eyes was enough to tear at both police officers' hearts and make them want nothing more than to take away the pain from the young man's life.


	8. The Knife

**Author's Note: I'm sorry. **

* * *

"Let him go," Jack insisted hotly. He couldn't watch Owen be tortured at John Hart's hands. He couldn't let that happen to one of his own team. He raised a gun and clicked off the safety catch.

John raised an eyebrow sceptically, "Would you really shoot me, Jack?" he asked mockingly. If he was in any way surprised to see the Torchwood team there he did a good job of hiding it.

"Yes," Jack retorted bluntly. He didn't like the way Owen was leaning so heavily on John. Nor did he think much of the copious amount of blood staining both their clothes and dripping down Owen's bare chest. Jack noted the young doctor's shirt was tied haphazardly around his leg and he didn't want to think what had happened to him. That was probably the result of the gun shot the neighbours had heard.

"D… Don't," Owen protested weakly. He knew exactly what would happen if Jack came any nearer. He didn't want Jack to feel responsible for that just because he didn't know. John was a shifty character and didn't want to take any risks.

"What?" Jack asked, confused.

"No…" Owen whispered. He was finding it hard to put together a sentence with anymore meaning than that. He couldn't breathe properly and everything was muddled in his head.

"Maybe you should listen to him, Jack," John sneered as he pulled out the kitchen knife again. He'd had it stuck in his back pocket to hide from the police and now seemed an appropriate moment to pull out the weapon. He brought it up to Owen's throat and shot Jack a challenging look.

"Don't you fucking dare," Jack growled darkly.

"Oh, I could do it," John said casually, "I could kill him on the spot."

"I have no doubts that you would," the Torchwood leader retorted bitterly. His eyes were on Owen and he was trying to work out a way to get to the young doctor without John knowing what had happened. If he shot him, would he have time to kill Owen before he died? Possibly. He couldn't take that risk. He couldn't gamble on any member of his team's life.

"He's never given up hope, you know," John said conversationally as he looked briefly at his prisoner, "He always said you'd come for him. Imagine how disappointed he'd be if you didn't manage to save him. Imagine how let down he'd feel. You've screwed this up Jack and you know you have. If you hadn't upset him in the first place he wouldn't have needed my help."

"Help?" Gwen whispered, "You've done nothing but hurt him."

"Good to see you, Gwen," John laughed as he spotted her. She glared at him as she stood beside her Captain with resolute glare.

"We can't say the same about you," Ianto added as he took his place on Jack's other side. Toshiko stood slightly behind then with the police officers. They seemed to be having difficulty deciding what they should do.

"Let Owen go," Jack demanded again, "Now. Or so help me I'll kill you."

"Really?"

"Really."

"But what about Owen?" John challenged. He pressed the knife slightly closer to his captive's throat and smirked dangerously. Jack's eyes flashed in Owen's direction and then back to John. He was still undecided about the best means of attack. He had to find a way to get John out of the way quickly in order to get to Owen.

Owen couldn't take it anymore. Every sound was merging and his vision was blurring. He just wanted to be safe and warm. He wanted to be happy and laugh with his friends. He wanted to forget everything of the past few days and just carry on as normal. He couldn't fight anymore. He couldn't keep the darkness away much longer. He was all too aware of the knife at his throat. He was scared to breathe – not that he could if he tried. Every single thing was becoming an effort and he couldn't keep it together. "J… Jack. I c… can't," he stuttered hopelessly.

"C'mon, hang in there Owen," Jack said softly.

"Owen, what can't you do?" John asked in a false parental voice, "Tell me what you can't do and I'll make it better."

The knife. It was so close. He could feel it. He could feel the pain. There was warm blood trickling down his throat. Any more and he'd die for sure. At least then the pain would be over. The darkness would have him then. He'd be safe. He'd be free. But what if there was nothing? What if it all just came to an end? No! There had to be something! There had to be something more! He couldn't die. No. _No! _But neither could he let Jack suffer because of him anymore. This was hard enough for the rest of the team as it was. They had reached a sort of stalemate and there was nothing more to be said or done. Well, maybe a few explanations would be nice but he couldn't hold on much longer. He had to stop this. If he didn't, nobody would.

Jack's eyes widened as he saw Owen's next action. It was clearly taking all the energy he had but he was determined to do it. Owen raised his arm with incredible difficulty and then brought his elbow back into John's stomach. His captor gasped in surprise and pain.

The knife. Pain. Red light. Chaos. Pain. Noise. Explosions. _Pain_. Screams. Gwen? Jack? Ianto? Tosh? Himself? Pain. Blood. Nothing.


	9. Hospital

**Author's Note: Shorter chapter because I'm not really allowed to by typing right now - I've got a really sore wrist and a concert coming up soon with my clarinet so I need to be careful. I'll try update as soon as possible anyway. And happy Saint Andrew's Day by the way!**

* * *

Jack reacted almost instantly. The gun went off with a bang that shook the room. John's eyes widened in shock as the bullet slammed into him. He let go of Owen and clutched at his own stomach in pain. Gwen ran forwards and fell to the ground beside her colleague and found him shaking convulsively and his eyelids were fluttering shut. She hated the intense look of pain on Owen's face. She noted the gaping wound along his collar bone where John's knife had cut into his skin. She looked to Jack for help and he was by her side in a second, ignoring John's cries of pain; the bastard deserved everything that came his way.

"Owen, stay with me," Jack insisted, "C'mon mate, please!" . Then he jumped up and ran to the kitchen drawers. With a small amount rummaging he eventually found a roll of kitchen roll stashed in the cupboard under the sink. He pulled it out snd ran back to Owen. He tightly wrapped it from his left shoulder, across his chest and under his right arm. Gwen was helping Owen sit up so that Jack could carry out this task. He took off his coat and wrapped it around the younger man to try and keep him as warm as they could. The two police officers were looking confused and frightened but one of them managed to call an ambulance. They'd be given retcon later on so they wouldn't remember anything they'd seen that day.

"Don't bother with the fucking ambulance!" Gwen snarled, "He could be dead by the time it gets here!"

"We'd be quicker taking him in the SUV," Jack said firmly as he looked helplessly at Owen. Then he scooped the young doctor into his arms with very little effort. "Make sure we have clearance with the police. Hell, just tell them I'm breaking the speed limit." The present police officers looked more than a little irked but phoned in Jack's demand. John was lying on the floor gasping and spitting in agony . Nobody actually seemed to care what they thought.

"You..._ bastard, _Jack," John snarled as he clutched at the wound in his stomach, "You'll pay for this!"

"I'll believe that when I see it," Jack retorted hotly. He couldn't be bothered with John at the time; all his thoughts were channelled on Owen. He picked up the young doctor and held him tightly against his chest, "Hang in there, Owen."

Owen was shivering violently. All he could feel was pain. He didn't know what was going on and every movement was making him dizzy. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't see when he opened his eyes. He couldn't hear properly. All he could make out was confused sentences that ended up muddled by the time they reached his head.

Jack ran out of the building carrying Owen. The little old lady across the road stared at them with her mouth hanging open in shock. He paid her no attention though. Gwen threw open the back door of the SUV and helped Jack lay Owen across the back seat. Then Tosh and Ianto clambered in on the floor beside him with the medical kit. Jack and Gwen jumped into the front. The Captain slammed on the accelerator as soon as he'd started the engine.

Owen was aware of the SUV's movements because every time Jack swerved around a corner his muscles contracted and made him wince. The Captain wasn't the most careful of drivers and the vehicle was prone to lurching up on to two wheels in Jack's desperation to get to the hospital as quick as possible. _Movement. Dizziness. Pain. Help...?_

"It won't be long now Owen," Ianto promised as Toshiko injected their friend with a dose of adrenaline to try and keep him conscious. She produced a canister of oxygen from the medical kit and fixed on the mouth piece and put it in Owen's mouth in an attempt to help him breathe.

She put a kind hand on Owen's arm as a gesture of comfort. Owen's whimpered as he felt like his body was on fire. He hadn't realised how hot he was until he'd felt the coolness of Toshiko's hand. In response to Owen's outcry, Jack slammed on the accelerator again. _Fire. Pain. God, I'm going to die. Please! No!_

Tosh noticed at once when Owen's breathing became shallower and weaker, "C'mon Owen, don't go! Just hang on!"

_Why...? Can't...? Hurts... _There was so much Owen wanted to say but the thoughts wouldn't form as sentences in his mouth.

"He's burning up," Ianto said anxiously pulling Jack's coat off of Owen to let him cool down a bit. He rummaged around in the box until he found a canister of cooling spray. He shook it and sprayed it over Owen's face in an attempt to bring his temperature down.

_What...? Heat... Someone, please... help? Can't..._

"Keep talking to him. Give him something to focus on," Jack instructed.

Tosh and Ianto nodded and then Tosh started a rather one sided conversation with the doctor. "What was the last thing you watched on T.V Owen? I saw this really amazing documentary the other day about penguins! It talked about how their lives and it was _fascinating_! You wouldn't believe that creatures like that would be so _intelligent_!"

_Penguins? What...?_

"-So the male penguin just stands there holding the egg while the mother goes to feed! That's a lot of responsibility for a guy penguin to hold and he does it spectacularly!" Tosh carried on, trying to remember every last detail of said penguin documentary. Gwen sniggered slightly.

"We're nearly there," Jack updated them.

"Thank God," Ianto breathed as he put a hand to Owen's forehead again and noted his sky-high temperature. Occasionally he would open his eyes and give them an expression of general confusion but at least the penguin story seemed to be keeping him conscious. Well, he never knew Owen had such an interest in penguins. Actually, Owen was probably wondering why the hell they were talking about penguins. He just hoped they got to the hospital before it was too late.


	10. Help

**Author's Note: I'm really sorry about how long it took to update. I really am. I hate leaving things this long but I've really had no choice. I've been so busy and it's near impossible. Between homework, this morning's concert (which I might add was the scariest thing I ever had to do – I was one of three clarinets and if I messed up it was really obvious) and Brownies… I'm just really sorry. I'm literally running out of the door again now. **

* * *

John smirked slightly as he reached for his discarded knife on the ground. The police officers had run outside to try and catch up with Jack but he could hear footsteps coming back again. He smirked and knew what he had to do now. His stomach was in agony but the pain was bearable for a while. He'd just have to get on with it.

He pulled the knife into his hand and held it tightly. He would have to keep it for use later. Wincing as the pain in his stomach twisted violently, he stuffed the knife down his sock. He would need it later on if his plan was going to work. And of course his plan was going to work. It had to.

Then the two police officers appeared around the door way accompanied by an ambulance paramedic. The paramedic ran and knelt down beside John and began to ask a few questions and inspect the gunshot wound. He offered a few comforting words but John just rolled his eyes impatiently. This was going to be an awkward journey.

All he needed was to get a pain killer and then get to the hospital. He'd find Jack and his little gang there. Maybe he could finish off their little doctor and perhaps even some of the others. They deserved it after all. The whole damn lot of them deserved to be killed.

* * *

"Alright there, Tosh? Yan?" Jack asked as he looked back at the other two for a few moments. Gwen snapped at him to get his eyes back on the road if he was going to drive at that speed so the Captain sighed and pressed down on the accelerator again as they hurtled along the road.

"Yeah we're fine but I don't know how much longer we've got," Tosh said anxiously. It was becoming more and more obvious that Owen was struggling to hold on. They were all sharing the common desperate wish for him to pull through but it was getting increasingly unlikely as time went by. It was hard for the team to watch but they had no choice. They had to keep going for their team mate's sake. Tosh and Ianto kept on whispering words of comfort in a desperate bid to keep Owen with them.

The gates of the hospital were a welcome sight and there was a collective sigh of relief as they sped through them. The SUV came to an abrupt halt as Jack slammed on the breaks without even looking at the parking spaces. He just stopped as close to the hospital as he could.

"C'mon," Jack commanded as he leapt out of the driver's seat, "Out!" The others obeyed quickly and jumped out onto the street looking terrified.

"Help!" Gwen suddenly shouted as she spotted an ambulance driver heading towards the reception. She chased after him and he turned around looking both concerned and curious. He was a big burly man and Gwen hoped he would be able to help her.

"What is it miss?" he asked with a small frown of puzzlement on his face, "You alright?"

"I'm fine," she said as she tried to stop the tears that threatened to fall. "It's my friend. He's been stabbed. You have to help us, please?" she begged frantically. The man's eyes widened slightly in shock and he flicked on his radio to request help. Then he ran to an ambulance and grabbed a stretcher hanging from the wall. He followed Gwen back to the SUV and with Jack's help, bundled the young doctor on to the stretcher.

Owen was completely unaware of all of this. His mind had sunk into a state of dazed numbness and all he knew of was a fuzzy blackness and a dim buzzing noise.


	11. He's Going To Be Alright

**Author's Note: Here's the next chapter and I'm sorry about the wait. I've had a lot on and it's only going to get worse come Saturday. Ah well. Sorry about it being a shorter chapter. I just really needed to update and this is all I needed to say in this chapter. **

* * *

"He'll be alright, won't he Jack?" Gwen asked as she paced back and forth in the waiting room. The team were outside the operating theatre while surgeons tried urgently to rescue their friend.

"Of course he will," Jack replied in an attempt to lighten the mood and put confidence back into his little team. He sat down on one of the hard plastic chairs and looked blankly at one of the posters on the wall. He didn't know what else he could do and the feeling of uselessness was what he was finding hardest to cope with.

"He'll be fine," Ianto assured Toshiko as the pair stood beside the door of the theatre.

"Yeah," she nodded quickly, "Yeah, I know."

"How's long is this gonna take, d'you think?" Ianto asked her slowly as he looked helplessly at the door in despair. He glanced down at his watch and sighed upon realising it hadn't been that long since he'd last checked – maybe only three minutes ago.

"I don't know," Tosh admitted sadly, "Lets go sit down."

"Yeah," Ianto agreed and went to find seats beside his colleagues. He sat down heavily beside Jack and smiled slightly as he felt the Captain take his hand almost instantly. He rested his head on Jack's shoulder and shut his eyes in a bid to pretend he was somewhere else.

"Gwen, you should go home to Rhys," Jack said eventually after a long and tense silence, "We could be here for a long time."

"No. Jack, it's still early afternoon. He won't be expecting me home till later and there's nothing to do at home. I'll be better off here. I want to be here for Owen," she said quietly without looking at Jack. He nodded understandingly. They all felt that way. They all wanted to be there for the young doctor and if that meant sitting around in a hospital worried sick, so be it.

"I'll go get some coffee," Ianto said after another apprehensive quiet spell. The rest of the team nodded in agreement.

"I'll come with you," Jack said as he got to his feet and followed Ianto out of the room towards a little coffee shop down a few corridors.

"He is going to be alright, isn't he?" Ianto asked slowly as he looked at Jack for reassurance.

"Yeah. Of course he will!" the Captain said in an attempt at optimism and confidence. The attempt failed miserably. He had no way of knowing how Owen was going to survive this and the odds were stacked against him. He'd lost so much blood and been through so much trauma it was unlikely he would pull through. But on the other hand, he was strong and he was determined.

"You really think that?" Ianto asked.

"I dunno Yan, if I'm being honest, I really don't know what to think," Jack admitted sadly as he pulled the younger man into a hug. It was then he noticed how close to tears he was and he sighed, "C'mon, let's get coffee."

* * *

John Hart winced in pain as a pain killer was injected into his body. He was in the ambulance and it wouldn't be long until he got to the hospital and then he could carry out his plan. The paramedics were asking him questions and he couldn't really be bothered giving them the answers. Why did they care what his name, age etc was? Damn them. They were getting him where he needed to be and then he'd kill them. Simple as.


	12. Tears

The team were getting restless and their worry for Owen was increasing dramatically with every minute that passed. Eventually however, the door to the operating theatre swung open and everyone stood up automatically.

The surgeon hovered in the door way with a tired face and grim expression, "You here for Owen Harper?" he asked.

"Yeah," Jack said, "How is he?"

"Stable," the surgeon said and the relief that washed over the group was so thick they could almost taste it.

"Thank God," Gwen whispered gently as she rubbed her temples slightly.

"He's conscious and talking but he's very tired. He had to be sedated when he came round after the operation because he got himself in a state," the surgeon said sadly, "Obviously he's been through a lot but we didn't ask…"

"Can we see him?" Jack wanted to know. The sooner he could apologise for everything that happened the better. If he hadn't screwed up Owen wouldn't have been so vulnerable.

"Yes, but don't be too loud or ask too many questions. Like I said, he's tired," the surgeon nodded as Jack listened attentively.

"Where do we go?"

"Ward Seven. Follow the yellow arrows on the walls," was the reply.

"Thank you," Jack said as he shook the other man's hand gratefully before bounding off in search of his young employee.

"Really thank you," Gwen added over her shoulder as she followed Jack down the corridor.

* * *

John stepped out of the ambulance with a self-satisfied smirk on his face. He strode confidently towards the hospital entrance with the knife concealed in his trouser pocket. The ambulance drivers wouldn't be following him he thought with a grin as he walked confidently into the reception. The paramedics had bandaged his wound and given him a heavy dose of painkiller and it had numbed to an ache. He could deal with that.

He paused in the reception for a moment and tried to decide what the best place to search for Jack and his gang would be. He didn't want to speak to the receptionist because that would mean he'd have to explain the copious amount of blood on his shirt and that would take far too long – not to mention it would be boring.

* * *

"Are any of you Jack Harkness?" a kindly dark haired nurse asked as the team reached the ward and asked for Owen.

"Yeah, me," Jack said stepping forward, "Why?"

"Owen keeps muttering about you in his sleep. From what little he'll tell me, I think he wants to talk to you," the nurse explained carefully.

"Right, I'll go see him," Jack said before turning to the others, "Wait here a second."

"Okay," Gwen said while the others nodded. The nurse led Jack into the ward and took him over to a bed where Owen was lying staring blankly at a wall.

"Owen?" the nurse probed gently.

Owen started and looked around in panic, "Huh?"

"You've got a visitor," the nurse said before taking a step back and heading out of the ward again.

"Jack…" Owen whispered with wide eyes.

"You alright, mate?" Jack asked as he sat down on the edge of Owen's bed. Owen looked at him in a mixture of shock, confusion, happiness and relief. Jack smiled slightly.

"Jack…" Owen repeated again, "Oh God, Jack." The tears were forming now and the young doctor tried to wipe them away but the pain across his collarbone stopped the movement.

Jack reached forward and wiped the first of the tears away with his thumb and then hugged him. Owen tensed slightly but then he couldn't help but breakdown. Everything seemed much too real and he didn't know how to deal with it in his head – so he cried. Jack just sat there and held the younger man tightly and tried not to cry himself.

It wasn't long before Owen seemed to have exhausted himself. His eyelids were drooping and he was struggling to stay awake. Jack lay him down on the bed again and watched while he fell asleep.


	13. Gunshot

**Author's Note: I'm really sorry again. Things have been hectic but it'll please you to know, the last of my after-school stuff finishes tonight. The School Concert is the last thing and then term ends on Friday. So, expect more updates!**

* * *

"I hope he's alright," Tosh whispered quietly as she leaned back against the wall of the corridor and rubbed her eyes wearily.

"Me too," Gwen agreed. Ianto nodded quietly without saying anything. What kind of world was it when someone who had done very little wrong could get so badly hurt because of it? If only Jack hadn't shouted at him like that… If only. Owen had got into deep. He'd believed the woman's story too much and he'd gotten hurt because of it. Jack hadn't trusted her but Owen did. The young doctor was stubborn and opinionated and when he'd made up his mind that was it; there was very little that could change it.

Gwen looked around at the other two sadly, "I can't believe this happened…"

"Me neither…" Ianto whispered. They were silent for a long moment as they were all lost deeply in their own thoughts.

"Hello gorgeous," came a sneering voice from behind Gwen. Her eyes widened in shock as she spun around in panic. John should be dead! Why was he here? Jack had shot him! He was dying when they left the in the SUV with Owen.

"Why are you here?" Ianto demanded.

"I'm here to finish what I started," John said with a smirk.

"You're not going any where near Owen," Gwen growled angrily.

John laughed, "You really don't know what I was aiming for, do you? I don't want to kill Owen. Well, not really."

"What are you here for then?" Ianto asked in barely more than a whisper. He was on edge now. Jack was still with Owen while the rest of them were outside in the corridor. Then he saw the knife glittering in John's hand. He'd raised it in a flash. He didn't have time even to think. There was no time to scarcely breathe.

Gwen reacted instinctively and drew out her gun from her inside pocket of her jacket. She didn't have time to raise it before John's knife was at her throat. He held her tightly and she trembled in his grip, "Let me go, you bastard!" she snarled.

"That's what little Owen said. Did I let him just go running back to Jack? Nah," John grinned, "Now give me the gun."

"No!" Gwen said as she looked around at her friends in panic. They were all unarmed and confused. Ianto was edging slowly towards the door of the ward, obviously in an attempt to reach Jack.

"Stand still," John demanded. Ianto's eyes darted to the door and then back to John, calculating the distance, "Stand still or I'll kill her," John added dangerously. There was a tension in the room and Ianto froze anxiously, "Now, give me the gun, Gwen."

With the knife pressed against her throat, all she could do was let the gun fall from her fingers onto the ground with a dull thud. He let go of her to retrieve the fallen weapon and in a flurry of movement; Ianto was dashing for the door of the ward. Then the explosion sounded.

When Jack heard it he felt like his world was crashing down in a flash. Owen was deeply unconscious in a drug-induced sleep and didn't hear anything. Then the Captian heard the panicked shouts from behind the door. Gwen and Tosh were yelling and swearing. He could hear John Hart shouting at them. Then a nurse's voice.

Jack stood up abruptly and ran to the door in panic. When he threw it open he felt his stomach tighten and his heart stop beating. "Ianto!"


	14. I Love You

**Author's Note: Dark themes. Sorry everyone. **

* * *

Before anyone had time to realise what Jack was doing, John was falling to the ground with a groan. Jack threw his own weapon down as quickly as he'd picked it up and felt tears stinging his eyes. He fell to his knees beside the young Welshman he'd grown to love so much. "Yan?"

"Jack?" Ianto whispered weakly.

"Yan, I'm here. Don't worry I'm here. It's going to be alright, I promise," Jack said frantically as he held Ianto tightly and tried to ignore the flowing blood. "Get help," he said urgently to Gwen, "God, Gwen get help!"

"Jack, calm down," Toshiko whispered shakily as Gwen ran to alert a doctor to what had happened.

"Jack?" Ianto mumbled drowsily, "I'm sorry."

"What? Why? Ianto, you don't need to be sorry!" Jack insisted as he squeezed the younger man's hand tightly.

"Jack, I'm… I'm not going to make it," Ianto said softly with something very close to terror in his eyes.

Jack felt his heart tearing into pieces as he held him close, "Of course you're going to make it Yan, the doctor will be here soon and he'll help. He'll make it better. Yan, he won't let you die!"

"I love you, Jack…" Ianto whispered faintly as his eyelids flickered slightly, "I… love… you…"

"I… I love you too," Jack said, struggling to put his feelings into words. He wasn't great at talking about his own feelings but he had to tell Ianto how he felt. He had to tell the man he loved just how much he cared.

Just then, a doctor came running down the corridor with Gwen at his side. His eyes widened in shock as he took in the little scene. John Hart was lying dead on the floor and a man was clutching another and looking half-crazed. The doctor crouched down beside them. It was too late though. It was over. Ianto was gone but Jack couldn't accept that, "Help him! Please, bring him back! _Please!_" Jack said wildly, eyes sparkling with fear and confusion. Gwen bit her lip as tears welled up in her eyes. Toshiko sank down the wall and sat on the floor in shock.

The doctor gently moved Jack out of the way and gave Ianto a quick check before radioing for help. With a small frown he looked at the gunshot wound in Ianto's chest and his expression flickered into fear and desperation.

Jack slumped against the wall with wide eyes, looking like a small child who's convinced a nightmare is real. Thing was, for Jack, the nightmare was all too real.

A young woman in a doctor's uniform appeared in the corridor and immediately dropped down beside her colleague with a medical kit. She tore open Ianto's shirt as the man pulled out a pair of shock pads from the kit box. He placed them on the young Welshman's chest and began procedure.

Jack was in shock. He couldn't take in what was going and he wasn't used to feeling like that. He'd thought the danger was over. He'd thought John Hart was dead already. He'd thought he'd save Owen and the rest of the team were safe. Ianto shouldn't be… No… He couldn't think about it. Not Ianto. _Please _not Ianto.

"I'm sorry," the doctor said sympathetically as he removed the shock pads after several attempts at reviving the young man.

"No! No! Don't say it!" Jack pleaded. Gwen fell to her knees beside Jack and held him in her arms tightly. It was strange and frightening. She wasn't used to seeing Jack like this and she didn't like it.

"Jack…"

"No!" Jack protested weakly, "He's still there! He's not dead!"

"Jack… Jack, I'm sorry," Gwen said as the first of the tears started flowing as Jack tugged away from her and collapsed beside Ianto.

"Yan? Ianto… please…"


	15. Not Everyone Wants To Hurt You

**Author's Note: I just wanted to say, thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far! You're really made me happy and writing this story has been so much more enjoyable for lack of a better word. I hope you all have a very merry Christmas, even if you don't celebrate Christmas I hope things go well for you! **

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Two weeks later, Owen was back in the Hub for work. He was quieter than usual and slightly jumpy but that was only to be expected. He fought to keep up the pretence that he was alright and Gwen and Tosh just accepted it. Only Jack actually seemed to realise he was lying. Maybe that was because the Captain was so good at hiding his emotions that he could tell when others were trying to do the same.

Jack wasn't succeeding in his usual mission to keep his pain hidden from the team even if he did try so hard. The hole that Ianto left was obvious to all of them but the Captain had taken it worst. It was the minor details that were beginning to be noticed. The Hub was gradually accumulating a silly amount of dust but nobody wanted to clean it up. It was always something Ianto did. Something they never thanked him for properly.

There was no coffee on their desks when they went in to work in the morning. Ianto hadn't been around making sure their stations were set up for the day and he didn't turn up at any point to keep them supplied with caffeine-filled goodness in a mug. He just wasn't there. But nobody wanted to make their own. It reminded them to strongly of the young life that had been taken from them much to soon.

One dreary Wednesday afternoon, Owen found himself in the Torchwood archives just wanting to be alone. He didn't want anyone to see him or speak to him. He just wanted a minute to be on his own and try and sort out his head. He slumped down the wall and buried his head in his hands. He still didn't understand what had happened to him. Every so often he'd have a terrifying flashback to that night and he'd feel the tears in his eyes. He'd start shaking. He'd wake up screaming and shouting in the night. He tried not to think about it but he could still feel the scar on his collarbone; the bruises; and the irritating limp in his leg the gunshot. He just wanted it all to go away.

He reached slowly in to his pocket and pulled out the bottle of Recton pills and bit his lip. He could make everything go away. It would be as though it had never happened. He could go back to how he was before he'd gone to the pub. None of it would matter anymore. None of it would mean anything to him. He couldn't know how he cut his collarbone. He wouldn't know why there were fading bruises on his body. Even if the team tried to explain to him, he wouldn't believe them.

He nearly laughed then. It was a great plan. It was pretty much flawless. Or it was until he heard soft footsteps approaching. Panicking slightly, Owen jumped to his feet and backed against the wall. He held up the bottle of pills and pulled the lid off tipping a single white pill into his hand. That would work, wouldn't it? It'd make all the pain go away. It would stop everything hurting. Hell, his heart was racing. Who was it that was coming down the archives? He'd only ever thought Ianto came down here.

"Owen?" came a gentle voice. The young doctor didn't really hear it; his mind was elsewhere being yelled at by John Hart.

"No!" Owen whimpered quietly as he sunk down the ground again, covering his ears and shutting his eyes. He couldn't go through it again. He didn't want to.

"Owen?" came the voice again.

"No!" Owen yelled in terror.

"Owen! Owen, it's Jack!"

"Jack!" the young doctor repeated in relief. The Captain smiled sadly and sat on the ground too. He looked terrible. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair was out of place. Jack's hair was _never _out of place. He looked at his employee and sighed as he took in the bottle of Retcon pills clutched in his hand. "Don't, Owen."  
"Why not?"

"Don't," was all the reply was.

"Jack I can't handle this anymore. I can't do it," Owen said agitatedly, "Every time someone comes near me, I'm scared Jack. I'm worried about people touching me again. I don't want them to."

Jack watched as Owen looked at the small pill in his hand and then at him in sheer confusion. The Captain reached out carefully and put his hand on the side of Owen's face. The doctor stared at him in evident panic and fear but didn't move away.

"What…. What you doing?" Owen whispered. Jack didn't reply - he just leant in closer.

Their lips met and neither pulled away. Jack shut his eyes tightly. He could feel Owen's tension and anxiety but he didn't care. Owen was too stunned to argue. Jack needed this. He needed to feel someone touch him again. He needed to know he wasn't alone. They _both _needed this.

"Not everyone wants to hurt you, Owen…" Jack whispered.


	16. Life Went On

**Author's Note: This is the final chapter of this story. I'm sorry! Thing is, I have exams in January and need to focus on them, and this story is at an end anyway. I just want to thank everyone who has reviewed, favourite-ed or alerted this story because it means a lot to me. It really does. So, thank you everyone. I will keep writing other stories for _Torchwood_ and _Doctor Who_ even though I've got my exams because to be honest, I need some sort of escape. So, hopefully I'll hear from some of you again, and if I don't, thanks for all your reviews to date! Also, happy new year everyone. I hope 2009 brings great things for you all! **

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For the most part, life went on as normally as it could. There would always be the space in their hearts where Ianto Jones had once been and nobody could quite comprehend what had happened to Owen – least of all, Owen himself. The team all struggled onwards knowing that they had to carry on. Aliens didn't stop just because the Torchwood team were going through a difficult time.

On the other hand, they often wondered to themselves whether the fact that they were kept busy did them some good. They had less time to dwell on the loss of a great team member and more time to focus on saving the world.

And so life had to carry on for them. There was no way that everything could grind to a halt because, if it did, who would be there to save the world? Owen spent a lot of time with Jack and that was something he'd never imagined would happen. There was something about Jack that made him feel safe even after what had happened before… before John.

He'd completely over reacted in the first place. He guessed he sort of deserved to be shouted at by Jack. He'd gotten too mixed up in a case and it had only led to him getting hurt. It was his own fault really. He should have been more careful about who he could trust. Jack had said the woman was dangerous and that he should stay away from her and her family. But Owen had genuinely believed she was the innocent and terrified victim in the case. He'd been wrong and the woman had nearly killed Gwen. Jack had shouted at him so he'd stormed off to the pub to go and get himself drunk. Only things hadn't quite worked out that way. He'd only gotten himself hurt and caused more problems than there needed to be.

Jack didn't know what it was about Owen but he just needed to feel like somebody cared. It wasn't the same as Ianto but he just needed to feel someone else's touch; somebody else who was hurting like he was.

Gwen noticed the change in the team's dynamic and it hurt her to watch. Jack was devastated over Ianto's death. She'd never quite realised just how close the pair of them were. Now it was too late for her to really understand their relationship. Ianto was gone and Jack was left behind. Jack was _always_left behind and there was nothing she could do to make him feel any better. Oddly, Owen seemed to do some good. Owen was the last person she'd expected to be able to help Jack but it was happening right in front of her. Owen seemed to use Jack as some sort of confidence thing while Jack depended on Owen for some sort of shield to hide behind. It was obvious Jack didn't want to think about Ianto being gone.

Tosh couldn't bear to see Owen in so much pain. He was a good pretender – most of the team were – but when he thought nobody was looking, the hurt was evident. She just wished there was something she could do to make it better but there was nothing. She couldn't help the one she loved because he wouldn't let her and she was too scared to ask.

And so life went on…


End file.
